Archiginnasio Palace, Bologna (must see)

Just past the Archaeological Museum lies the historic Archiginnasio Palace, constructed in the 1560s as the first permanent home of Europe's oldest university. Prior to its erection, the faculties of law and medicine were like lost socks, scattered across various sites within the city. The palace served as the university's central headquarters until 1803, when it relocated to its present campus on Zamboni Street.

Presently, it hosts the esteemed Archiginnasio Municipal Library, which preserves a monumental collection of over 1.3 million books, manuscripts, and historic documents. The complex also features the lavishly decorated Stabat Mater Hall—which hosted Gaetano Rossini's inaugural Italian performance of Stabat Mater in 1842 under the direction of Donizetti—and the captivating Anatomy Theatre.

The moment you enter the palace's premises, make sure you get a good look all around the lower level. The elegant central courtyard, framed by an impressive two-story portico, along with the staircases and lecture halls, is covered in the world's largest mural heraldic complex, displaying roughly 6,000 student coats of arms alongside tributes to the university's legendary professors. This courtyard historically served as the public backdrop for university ceremonies, including the public Preparation of the Theriac. This highly sought-after medieval panacea and antidote for venomous bites was a complex concoction comprising over sixty ingredients, including viper flesh, opium, fermented herbs, and honey, publicly mixed by the medical faculty to verify its authenticity.

For the next highlight, leave the courtyard through its south-western corner where you'll be met by a staircase to the upper levels. Follow it up to the top floor and make your way down the hallway to your left. Behold the Anatomy Theatre, constructed entirely of spruce wood in 1637 in the shape of an amphitheater. It was designed to give the university’s long-standing medical school a grand, permanent arena for its annual winter public anatomy lectures.

The room is adorned with life-sized wooden sculptures depicting renowned university anatomists and celebrated ancient physicians. Flanking the professor's ornate podium are the famous Skinned Men—two anatomical statues depicting the human body stripped down to its muscle layers, structurally supporting a canopy overhead. While popular myths suggest the Church heavily restricted these sessions, dissections were actively permitted and heavily attended academic and public events.

Photographs at the entrance showcase the devastation suffered by this wing of the building during the 1944 bombardment, yet immediate post-war reconstruction efforts utilized salvaged original wooden sculptures retrieved from the rubble.